October 2025. Mental Wellness

Mental Health and Thanksgiving: Gratitude and Emotional Balance

For millions of Americans, Thanksgiving represents gratitude, generosity, and togetherness. Beyond the celebration, it also offers an opportunity for self-reflection and emotional growth. Balancing family obligations, unresolved conflict, and financial pressures can sometimes test our mental health—but it also invites us to practice patience, compassion, and realistic expectations.

The relationship between mental health and Thanksgiving is both positive and complex. Gratitude is a well-known protective factor for emotional well-being, and even when moments of tension arise, they can serve as reminders to ground ourselves in empathy and presence (American Psychological Association [APA], 2023). The holiday season, therefore, becomes not just a challenge, but a chance to strengthen emotional balance: joy interwoven with mindfulness, and connection enriched by self-awareness.

Acknowledging this duality helps normalize the full range of human emotions without guilt. As the APA notes, self-compassion and awareness are two of the most effective tools for sustaining well-being during periods of social and emotional intensity (APA, 2023).

Understanding Family Dynamics During Thanksgiving

Family gatherings often bring warmth and connection—but they can also bring up familiar dynamics. Decades of family systems research show that repeated interaction patterns, or emotional scripts, tend to resurface under stress (Walsh, 2020). Sibling rivalries, political disagreements, or unspoken expectations may return despite our best intentions.

To maintain peace, clinicians recommend preemptive emotional regulation: preparing mentally before gatherings, identifying triggers, and practicing empathy. A 2022 Cleveland Clinic report found that mindful breathing and reframing techniques reduced interpersonal tension by nearly 30% during high-stress family events.

Setting boundaries is equally important. Boundaries protect psychological safety and prevent emotional contagion—when one person’s anxiety spreads unconsciously to others (Feldman Barrett, 2023).

Remember: setting limits isn’t rejection—it’s a way of protecting your energy and ensuring more meaningful, balanced interactions.

Gratitude and the Brain: Why It Works

Gratitude acts as a stabilizer for the mind. Studies from the University of California, Davis, show that daily gratitude practices enhance optimism, sleep quality, and immune function (Emmons & McCullough, 2021).

From a neurological standpoint, gratitude activates the ventral tegmental area (VTA)—a dopamine-rich region linked to motivation and pleasure (Harvard Health Publishing, 2022). This explains why giving thanks can lift mood, reduce cortisol, and improve relationships.

In therapy, gratitude journaling is often used as part of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) to redirect focus from perceived lack to abundance. By reinforcing positive emotional memory, clients report greater resilience to chronic stress.

The key takeaway: gratitude supports mental health most when it’s authentic, not forced.

Common Thanksgiving Stressors

According to the APA’s 2023 Stress in America Report, 44% of U.S. adults experience heightened stress during the holidays, citing finances, workload, and family dynamics as main triggers.

Typical Thanksgiving stressors include:

• Perfectionism: The belief that everything must go perfectly.
• Financial pressure: Overspending to meet family expectations.
• Social comparison: The illusion of “perfect holidays” amplified by social media.
• Role overload: Managing cooking, hosting, and emotional caretaking at once.

While these stressors are common, they also provide opportunities to practice self-kindness and realistic expectations. Research from Johns Hopkins Medicine (2023) shows that effective stress management strengthens both emotional and physical health, reducing the risk of anxiety, insomnia, and cardiovascular strain.

Scheduling downtime, moderating alcohol, and keeping consistent sleep routines can all help restore balance.

If you notice irritability or fatigue, view them as signs to slow down and recharge—not as failures. Small adjustments can create meaningful change.

Staying Calm During Family Conflicts

Holiday disagreements are normal—and they can be handled with grace. Emotional regulation helps bridge impulse and intention, allowing you to respond rather than react.

A 2022 meta-analysis in Frontiers in Psychology found that mindfulness-based interventions reduced interpersonal aggression and improved empathy across 17 studies. Simple tools like box breathing (4-4-4-4) or naming emotions aloud interrupt stress responses in the body.

Another helpful tool is cognitive reframing—shifting thoughts from judgment to understanding. Instead of “My family never listens,” try “They might be expressing stress differently.”

This aligns with radical acceptance, a concept from dialectical behavior therapy (Linehan, 2021), which means acknowledging reality as it is—reducing emotional resistance and promoting peace of mind.

How Thanksgiving Affects Mental Health

Rituals like Thanksgiving have deep psychological significance: they reinforce belonging and connection. Studies from University College London (2022) found that sharing meals increases oxytocin, the hormone associated with trust and bonding.

Mindfulness enhances this effect. By paying attention to the aroma of food, the rhythm of conversation, and the warmth of presence, gatherings transform into moments of genuine awareness and calm.

As Kabat-Zinn (2020) reminds us, mindfulness allows us to act “from the present rather than from the past.” When applied during Thanksgiving, it nurtures empathy, patience, and emotional attunement—three pillars of strong mental health.

Healthy Coping Strategies for Holiday Stress

Therapists often describe the holidays as an emotional marathon, not a sprint. Sustainable well-being depends on pacing and integrating small moments of restoration throughout the week.

Clinically validated strategies include:

1. Sleep hygiene: 7–9 hours of rest improves mood and focus.
2. Physical activity: Movement releases endorphins and reduces rumination (CDC, 2023).
3. Grounding techniques: The 5-4-3-2-1 sensory method calms anxiety.
4. Digital detox: Limiting social media to 30 minutes daily improves well-being (APA, 2023).
5. Social support: Schedule one-on-one time with someone you trust.

Even simple acts—lighting a candle, walking outdoors, or saying no to one more obligation—can promote calm and clarity.

Does Thanksgiving Improve Mental Health?

When celebrated with genuine gratitude and balance, yes. A 2023 study in Positive Psychology and Well-Being found that participants who practiced gratitude during Thanksgiving week saw a 12% boost in life satisfaction and a 17% drop in depressive symptoms.

But forced gratitude can have the opposite effect. Real gratitude holds both joy and hardship together. As Dr. Kristin Neff (2022) explains, “Self-compassion allows gratitude to coexist with grief.”

Thanksgiving supports emotional health most when authenticity replaces performance—and when kindness guides self-reflection.

Family Gratitude Practices That Strengthen Connection

Gratitude doesn’t just boost happiness—it nurtures emotional closeness and resilience within families. Research consistently shows that shared gratitude practices enhance empathy, trust, and a sense of belonging, all of which are protective factors for mental well-being (Emmons & McCullough, 2021; Wood et al., 2022). When families express gratitude together, they strengthen neural pathways associated with positive emotion and social bonding, particularly in the prefrontal cortex and limbic system (Harvard Health Publishing, 2022).

Here are a few meaningful, evidence-based ways to weave gratitude into Thanksgiving gatherings:

• Three Blessings Technique: Each person shares three good things from their day or week. Over time, this habit rewires attention toward positive experiences and enhances long-term optimism.
• Gratitude Circle: Before the meal, invite everyone to name a person or moment they are thankful for. This ritual fosters empathy and creates a shared emotional tone of appreciation rather than comparison.
• Letter of Thanks: Writing a heartfelt note to a loved one—and reading it aloud—strengthens connection and deepens emotional expression (Wood et al., 2022).
• Family Gratitude Jar: Throughout the month, each family member adds notes of appreciation or small victories to a jar. Opening them together on Thanksgiving can become a powerful reminder of collective growth and support.
• Mindful Meal Moment: Take a brief pause before eating to reflect on the hands and efforts behind the food—farmers, cooks, and loved ones alike. This shared mindfulness cultivates presence and humility.

These seemingly simple traditions can elevate oxytocin levels, reduce cortisol, and create a sense of psychological safety at the table—a space where everyone feels seen, valued, and emotionally secure. Over time, such rituals turn gratitude from a seasonal sentiment into a lasting family habit of connection and care.

November and Mental Health Awareness

November is both National Gratitude Month and Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) Awareness Month. Shorter daylight hours can disrupt circadian rhythms and lower serotonin (National Institute of Mental Health [NIMH], 2023).

To counteract this, mental health experts recommend light therapy, regular outdoor activity, and staying socially engaged. If low mood lasts longer than two weeks, professional evaluation is advised.

The dual nature of November—gratitude and melancholy—captures the full range of human emotion. Recognizing both helps sustain balance through the holiday season and beyond.

The 5 C’s of Mental Health

The 5 C’s are simple, memorable principles to support emotional health year-round:

1. Care – Nurture your mental, physical, and spiritual well-being.
2. Connection – Build supportive, judgment-free relationships.
3. Compassion – Offer empathy to yourself and others.
4. Courage – Seek help when you need it. Therapy is strength.
5. Consistency – Maintain habits that bring you calm and stability (Neff, 2022).

Fostering a Culture of Compassion

Research continues to show that community compassion predicts better collective well-being. The more openly families talk about emotions, the lower the levels of shame and isolation (SAMHSA, 2023).

To support loved ones this Thanksgiving:

• Ask genuine, specific questions—not just “How are you?”
• Validate emotions (“I can see this is hard for you”) instead of minimizing them.
• Encourage therapy when needed—it’s an act of self-respect, not weakness.

Prevention is always more powerful than intervention. Open, compassionate conversations during family meals can quietly reduce stigma and strengthen emotional literacy for generations.

Gratitude as a Path to Healing

Mental health and Thanksgiving are deeply intertwined. The holiday season offers both challenge and opportunity—a time for reflection, connection, and healing.

Gratitude is not denial. It’s the conscious choice to see both pain and possibility.

If you or someone you love is struggling with stress, anxiety, or emotional overwhelm this season, professional help can make all the difference.

Reach out to Sessions Health to connect with licensed clinicians offering compassionate, evidence-based care.

Let this Thanksgiving be more than a celebration of gratitude—let it be a commitment to collective healing and emotional growth.